Tea cartridge



T. ALLATT NOV 4 TEA CARTRIDGE Fil'ed Au A INVENTOR 4M ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 4, 1924. I

TED STAT 1,514,244 PATENT" o -"mcs.

THOMAS ALLATT, or WESTFIELD, NEw J RSEY, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

, or NEw YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION or TO MILLIE PATENT HOLDING CO. INC. NEW YORK.

Appflication .flled August 8 To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THoMAs ALLAu'r, a citizen of Great Britain, and resident of VVestfield, in the county of Union and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tea Cartridges, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements in cartridges for percolating or extracting the flavor from tea-leaves or coffee. It pertains more particularly to cartridges made up of open-mesh textile fabric, such as cotton, each cartridge containing a definite quantity of tea-leaves or oofiee, suiiicient for a sin le brewing.

Cartridges of the type are usually made in the form of a small bag or similar container, which is closed after the filling operation by suitable means. To the bag is usually fixed a strin to the'free end of which is attached a andle, made, for instance of cardboard. This string serves as the means for sus ending the cartridge from the receptacle, in which the extraction is to take place. In order to produce cartridges of this type, obviously quite a number of separate and distinct steps are necessary, to wit: First, a bag must be 0 formed, second, the mouth of the bag must be closed, after the same has been reviously filled with tea or coffee, third, a string of predetermined size must be cut and attached to the bag, this step being preferably, done in the constructions heretofore in use, simultaneously with the bag closing operation, and, fourth, a cardboar handle or tag must be attached to the free end of the string, either before or after the said string is attached to the bag.

The main object of the present invention is to provide a cartridge, which is so constructed that all of the steps above referred to are performed on a sewing machine without interruption and, in addition thereto, the string is also produced by the sewing machine, thereby greatly simplifying the cartridge and its reduction.

With these and 0t er objects in view, which will more fully appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the combination, arrange ment and construction of parts hereinafter described, pointed out in the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying TEA. CARTRIDGE 1, 1922, Serial No. 555,413. I

drawings, it being understood that many present invention; and Fig. 2 is a. section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1.

The cartridge is made up of a strip 10 of open mesh textile fabric, such as cotton, said strip being folded at its transverse center line 11, a quantit of tea-leaves or coflee sufficient for a sing e brewing being interposed between the two plies 12 and 12 of the strip, the respective free edges of the said two plies being then brought into abutment and united on a sewing machine by a line 13 of stitches. In this manner a cartridge is provided. In producing the line of stitches, a sewing machine is used, whereby the thread of the stitch is carried over the ed e of the two plies of the fabric, either by t e needle or by some mechanism other than a needle; In this manner, the loose ends of the threads are brought up against the edge of the fabric and held in concealed position by the thread of the stitches, or some special trimmin means may be used for removing the sai loose ends or thrums; A nicely finished cartridge is thus produced. After the cartridge has been stitched in the manner described, the line of stitches is continued, whereby a chain 14 is formed. This chain may be of any suitablev length, the stitches being then continued on a asteboard tag 15, as shown at 16, whereby t e said tag is attached to the chain.

The cartridge may be of any suitable configuration, the fabric ofwhich it is made loeing, preferably, sterilized before the tealeaves or codes are placed between the two plies, formed as above described.

In brewing tea or coffee with the improved device, the cartridge is taken hold of by its handle 15 and lowered into the brewing receptacle, the free end of the chain 14 and handle being permitted to hang over the mouth of the receptacle, after which its cover is put into place. Into the receptacle cartridge from the receptacle, such as a tea pot or a coffee pot, and also as the means -whereby the cartridge may be handled.

From the foregoing it appears that all of the steps of making the cartridge, with the exception of the filling'operation, are performed by a sewing-machine in a continuous process, that is to say Without interruption, the chain forming an integral part of the means which unites the plies of the fabric, it serving at the same time to attach to the cartridge the handle or tag.

What I claim is 1. A device for extracting essence from tealeaves or coffee, comprising a strip of textile fabric having the material the essence of which is to be extracted placed thereon and then folded on its center line to form two plies contacting all around their free edges, a line of stitches extending close to and in parallel relation to said free edges for uniting said two plies, the thread of said stitches being carried over the edge of the fabric, said stitches being continued beyond the fabric to form a chain which serves as a suspending means for the device.

2. A device according to claim 1, compris ing a tag on the outer end of said chain, the line ofvstitches being continued beyond said chain and passed through said tag.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York, and State of New York, this 13th day of April, A. D. 1922.

THOMAS ALLATT. 

